Truth
by knownangel
Summary: There had always been more to Tsuna than his clumsiness and "Dame-Tsuna"ness. And he has more connections to the mafia than he knows. But he forgot. A/N: A bit of a drabble or more exploring what I think are inconsistencies in the story through the eyes of different characters. Definitely not to be taken seriously. Major OC presence, probably AU as well.
1. Reborn

To be honest, it's been bugging me for a while. Iemitsu is the leader of CEDEF but his family doesn't get targeted, at all. So, either he is really good at hiding paper trails, had someone stationed to keep and eye on his family or there was some form of outside interference. Seeing as there never seems to be any sign of black suits that seem to be synonymous with mafioso or hidden bodyguards in Tsuna's childhood and the apparent ditzyness he has towards his family, I'm inclined to believe it had something to do with the last one. But then the story doesn't make sense because if there was outside interference then they would turn up at some point in time within the story. And his wife, Nana. Is it possible for someone to be that clueless? Then again, I'm picky like that because since when was manga always realistic? Which is what fanfiction is for, right?

Disclaimer: As much as I would like to claim KHR is mine, it's not.

* * *

"Are you sure Na-chi?"

The boy took a deep breath and nodded, "I don't want to hurt anymore." He murmured in reply.

The hand gently petting his soft brown hair paused as the owner studied the young boy.

"I don't know what will happen if I do seal your memories away though, there are so many things that could go wrong."

Thin arms wound themselves tighter around the woman's neck as the boy buried his face in her shoulder for comfort.

"Don't care," was the quiet reply, "just wanna forget."

A pause, then a sigh.

"Very well little one." Gentle hands cradled the child as she walked away from the bloody room, careful to not disturb him more as she stepped around the bodies, "I will protect you from the monsters, Sawada Tsunayoshi."

(This is a line break. No, really)

The day started pretty normally for one Sawada Tsunayoshi. He woke up late to his mother's call of 'Breakfast is ready!', rushed about to get ready for the day, tripped down the stairs before snagging a piece of toast and tumbling out the door to hopefully get to school on time.

It continued to be a fairly normal day too. He didn't quiet manage to get to school on time, which led him to be 'bitten to death' by the local disciplinary committee leader, Hibari Kyouya, which made him even later for class, which led to the usual ridicule and scorn, which lead to the usual calls of 'Dame-Tsuna' and bullying.

Then he got home and his whole world was turned upside down.

"I'm the world's strongest hitman, Reborn." Said the baby masquerading as a tutor, "and I'm here to make you into the successor of the strongest mafia family."

Or something like that.

Tsuna had panicked, because him? Dama-Tsuna? The kid who still fell over his feet by tripping on air while walking over a perfectly flat ground? Who struggled to get a test score above 20? Who was at the bottom of the bottom of the food chain? Surely there was no way. Not to mention the absurd claim of a baby who claimed to be the strongest hitman, because, come on, it was a baby! No way a two year old could be capable of being a hitman of any kind.

Reborn then proceeded to prove him wrong, forcing him through what seemed to be never ending trials and challenges, that - thank god - he managed to survive. Several of which he was sure he was gonna die from, like challenging Mukuro and Xanxus.

But he had survived. And his hard won friends did as well. And to him, that's all that really mattered.

To Reborn though, while he was glad Tsuna had survived and gotten stronger as a result, there were a couple of descrepencies that didn't match the image of 'Dame-Tsuna'.

Firstly, he seemed oddly desensitised to brutality. Sure he 'Hie-ed' his head off when he came across beaten and bloody scenes, but there was an element of, falseness he felt. As if the boy was more surprised at the presence rather than the cruelty. He would've written it off as the infamous Vongola hyperintuition, but his instincts had told him otherwise.

Then there was his fighting ability. He had started with none, as expected, but he had picked up the fighting style quickly, a little too quickly for a completely untrained novice. It was as if his body remembered being trained before.

Not to mention, the boys intelligence. According to the records, up to age 8, the boy had been doing fairly well in school. Then one day, his scores had immediately plummeted to the bottom of the class, as did his ability to do anything well said the teachers comments. Reborn had initially thought that the boy had simply started repressing his intelligence for some unknown reason, but it became apparent that there was something else at play, because that boy clearly was that thick as he struggled to learn even the most basic concepts. There was no medical reason, no hospital visit, no accident of any sort to prelude the drop. It just happened.

In addition, there were the disappearing assassins. He regularly received reports where assassins had been sent to target Vongola Decimo. Several, he had dispatched himself, but many were removed before he had time to eliminate them. Several, he had mused, probably fell prey to the bloodthirsty Discipline Committee, as there were reports of hitmen ending up in hospital after being beaten up by a blunt object. Then there were the ones that vanished, the only remains and signs they were there and had been killed were easily washed away blood stains.

Finally, there were the times, not often, but often enough, where Tsuna seemed to completely disappear when he had gone off somewhere to arrange a challenge, delivery of materials, status report of his charge or something of the sort. The kid was supposed to be completely untrained in the art of stealth, but the damn boy still managed to send away the silver hair puppy and the baseball ace, then vanish for an hour or so at a time when he was occupied with something else, only to be found later as he came home from somewhere.

In short, it was frustrating and concerning.

There were very few people of the caliber who could match Reborn in terms of skill. Most of them having very specialized skill-sets or were part of the Arcobaleno who wouldn't have any reason to hang around Namimori for a prolonged period of time, nor to target Vongola as most had an unspoken agreement with Vongola of non-interference with family business. The idea of one being in constant contact with the Vongola heir was...unsettling.

So he started shadowing the boy more closely after the 6th time, going to extreme measures to go undetected in hopes of finding out why the boy kept disappearing.

It took a while, but eventually it happened again.

He watched as the boy sent away his followers (Gokudera-kun I really need to pick up the groceries for mum, but I also need to go drop off a letter at the post office as well could you go buy them for me? Could you help him Yamamoto-kun?) which was surprisingly manipulative and subtle of the boy. ("Hai Juudaime! I would be honoured to do so! Come on baseball freak, you heard Juudaime, let's go!" "Maa, maa Hayato-kun, the groceries aren't going anywhere soon!" "Don't call me by my first name you idiot, and hurry up!)

For a moment, both tutor and student stood watching the self proclaimed right hand man drag the other away in amusement, before the student turned away and began walking in the opposite direction. Sure enough, the boy went to the post office to drop off a letter, but instead of returning home, the boy wandered down several roads and an alley to an ordinary apartment block, went inside, the gatekeeper letting him pass with a friendly wave, showing he was a regular visitor.

Riding the lift up to the sixth floor, (and wasn't it amusing to remain unnoticed by Tsuna for the entire lift ride, although he was standing right there. He made a note to up the boy's training on awareness of his surroundings.) and to apartment 604, Tsuna knocked on the door before stepping back a little.

When the door opened, Reborn felt his eyebrows involuntarily ride up. His charge had been meeting with Nephilim Tsukikage, one of the very, very few mercenary's who could claim to be close to or on a similar level as him.

It was with disbelief as he watched the woman greet Tsuna (Ara, Na-chi? Come on in, I managed to get some really good cake today.) and usher him inside. As she was closing the door, Nephilim looked over to Reborn's hiding spot, an amused smile curling around her lips and golden eyes glowing knowingly.

"You too are welcome Signore Reborn."

Ignoring Tsuna's startled 'Hiieeeeee!', the baby hitman dropped all pretence of hiding and calmly entered the apartment.

It was a very nice apartment, open and modern. The kitchenette was connected to the living room and Reborn could see the merged bedroom and study as well as the bathroom through the open doors. Furniture was arranged to provide cover and good visual in case of an attack. Or in this case, a peace offering in the form of afternoon tea.

"Boungiorno Signora Nephilim, I wasn't expecting to see another of us in town." Stated Reborn as he kissed the air above her knuckles in greeting (he was a gentleman after all) and then seated himself on one of the couches. It was the colour of fresh earth, soft enough to be comfortable, but most likely resilient enough for sudden fights.

"Well, I've been here for a while." Was the nonchalant reply as the woman opened a fresh packet of coffee beans. He could see an opened packed tucked away next to the coffee machine, so it was a clear peace offering. "You drink of preference was espresso yes?"

"Yes, black, no cream."

Tsuna had been shocked speechless, whipping his head back and forth to stare at his long time friend and his tutor, trying to understand what was going on. The hitman's fingers itched to aim a bullet at the boy to startle him out of his unbosslike behaviour.

"Sit down Na-chi, don't look so panicked, I'll have the cake ready in a moment." she chided gently as deft hands prepared his coffee.

Numbly, the Vongola heir sat down next to his tutor on the couch, eyes still wide in bewilderment as the woman brought over beverages and cake, Black Forest from the looks of it.

He studied the woman as she set things out. Long black hair tied up in a simple tail, tanned skin covering well honed muscles as she moved with elegant, predatory grace. Long lashes framed golden eyes, a hint of asiatic descent making her seem exotically beautiful, all enhanced by the black sleeveless shirt and leather pants she wore. He guessed she was in her twenties, well taught in the art of blades from the calluses on her hands.

Eventually, everything was set out and they descended into small talk, Nephilim brightly enquiring about Tsuna's latest adventures and offering advice where it was due. Reborn felt unsettled as his student, after seemingly to forget his presence (then again, he was trying to not interfere to try and understand the dynamics of their relationship), spoke of everything with out hesitance between bites of cake. Cake was devoured, and indeed it was excellent cake, and soon Tsuna was nervously preparing to leave, clearly anticipating some form of punishment from his spartan tutor.

"Go home without me," was the order, instead of the expected borderline inhumane torment, "I would like to talk to Signora Nephilim about something."

The boy shifted uncomfortably for a moment longer, before being sent a reassuring smile from the hitwoman, "Don't worry, we just need to talk Na-chi, I'll still be in one piece after this."

Tsuna nodded hesitantly, and with another backwards glance, left the apartment.

Silence reigned for a moment longer as she replaced the spent drinks.

"What do you want with Sawada Tsunayoshi?" Reborn finally asked, eyeing the admittedly enigmatic woman across from him. She was known to accept jobs seemingly at random, with a near 100% success rate. One day, she would accept a high paying assassination, then turn down another high pay job for a voluntary retrieval job the next. Strange for an assassin, who normally only accepted the highest paying jobs.

She studied the pseudo-baby over the rim of her cup, "To protect him." she finally stated.

The words seemed to echo on the silent apartment.

"To protect him?" Parroted the baby hitman, "so you can get in the good graces of Vongola?"

The cup clinked as she placed it back on the table with a sigh.

"Let me tell you a story Signore Reborn." she began, folding her hands in her lap, eyes haunted, "there once was a young boy. His father was a mafia man who had married a non-mafia wife, and to protect his family, he left for long stretches of time keeping minimal contact with them so that no-one would target them. It worked for a while, but during that time, the boy grew to be sad and upset that seemingly everyone but him had a father. The other children saw it too, and would mock the boy how his father hated him and didn't want such a stupid boy. One day, a passing hitwoman came by, and saw the boy being bullied. Being disgusted at the shameful behaviour, she chased the bullies off and comforted the child. She was in the area to lie low after her last high profile job, as such spent several days getting to know the child when she went out and about.

"Overtime, she grew to adore the boy as a little brother and at the same time, noticed a mafioso family in the area as well as the inherent strength he had. Wary the boy would be targeted because of her and the power that slumbered within him would burn him out one day, she offered to teach him a couple of tricks for self defence, under the guise of helping him ward off future bullies. The boy took to the lessons like a duck to water and soon grew in strength. Sure enough, one day, the mafioso made a move. But they weren't targeting her, rather the boy. It was then she found the boy was the child of a high ranking mafia leader, luckily, the boy was intelligent enough to avoid capture and harm, instead luck helped arrange it so the men were taken care of by the rising group local law enforcers."

Here her lips quirked up in amusement as did Reborn's, it was probably the fledgling disciplinary committee. It seemed Tsuna's cloud guardian had started his career early. But a chill of worry remained. It seemed Iemitsu didn't hide the presence of his family enough to have them targeted by enemy families.

"The boy explained to the hitwoman this was normal," she continued, "that many times there were men in suits that tried to catch him, but he always managed to get away. Though he knew that one day his luck would run out, which was why he was eager to learn what she taught him. So the hitwoman decided to remain in the city to keep an eye on the boy. Then one day the worst possible thing happened. The boy was kidnapped and couldn't escape, when the hitwoman discovered this, she went on rampage, hunting down the enemy family mercilessly until she found the boy. But by then it was too late. He had seen the monsters the underworld had to offer and darkness that lay there. So he asked the hitwoman to make him forget. And she did."

He swiftly put together the pieces together, the puzzle unravelling before him. "You are the one killing the stray mafioso. And you sealed his knowledge of the underworld and fighting abilities."

A wry twist of the lips. "Correct."

"Will you continue to hide?" Why she hid was obvious, and as much as he wanted to, this was not the time to investigate her abilities.

"No, I feel my presence and Na-chi's memories need to be returned soon."

The baby narrowed his eyes, "you know something?"

Nephilim gazed silently at Reborn through hooded eyes, suddenly seeming more ancient than her youthful appearance.

"Change is on the horizon. Sawada Tsunayoshi has the power to change the underworld as we know it, but he needs to face his past to change himself before he can change anyone else. The him now is a cover, an echo of what he was and what he can become."

The words were heavy, resonating within him. It was the truth after all, he had glimpsed the man the boy could become.

He gripped the edge of his hat bringing it down to shadow his eyes. "When will you release his memories?"

"Hmm, there's no time like the present yes?" she replied brightly, bouncing back to the cheerful persona before the almost interrogation started.

Reborn couldn't help but smirk at the mischievous gleam in her eyes.

"Indeed, I'm sure maman wouldn't mind feeding an extra person."

* * *

Ok...It started out the way I wanted it, but the rest really didn't turn out the way I expected...my mind scares me sometimes. And that ending. I hope no one minds the giant segment about my OC too much.

I'm very tempted to leave this as a one shot, but it feels like it could be continued. Decisions, decisions.

Anyways, you know the drill, R&amp;R. It boosts my ego.

Just saying.


	2. Sawada Nana

Right. I said I was planning on leaving this as a one-shot. My brain decided it wasn't to be so. So it's now a two-shot, potentially three-shot according to the trend in my brain.

Disclaimer: I don't own KHR no matter how much I would like to.

* * *

Sawada Nana saw much more then she let on. She knew that there was no way here husband was a construction worker (like construction workers worked in the South Pole). She knew the explosions, bangs and thumps that occurred whenever Tsuna's friends came over were hardly simple rough housing. That there was no way Reborn was a normal baby, because normal babies could never qualify as tutors not travel alone. More importantly, she knew whatever her husband did, her family was a target.

So she acted oblivious in hopes of deterring those targeting her.

In reality, she normally was a little airheaded and oblivious, but she exaggerated that particular trait. It was just easier that way, to pretend that she didn't know anything, or notice anything out of the ordinary. It was the only way she could cope.

But sometimes, even that wasn't enough.

She would be followed while shopping or whatever errands she was running, usually by strange foreign men in black suits, trailing behind her. Sometimes she would notice them straight away, other times it would come like a jolt, that_ yes_ that she had seen that man at the spice aisle, the checkout and now _he was around the corner of the bakery __following her_.

Occasionally, especially when her precious Tsu-chan was younger, they would approach her, asking for directions to so-and-so destination in heavily accented Japanese, trying to get her to guide them to that place. It terrified her each and every time it happened, the clueless mask that she was forced to wear straining at the edges, the silent mantra of 'leave me and my family alone!' as well as various scenes, each more gruesome than the last running through her head as she made excuses to escape what could be her death.

There was no way these men were the government officials that they sometimes claimed to be.

These days though, the men didn't turn up as much anymore, and when they did, they quickly vanished from whatever post they were supposed to be manning. Often, this was accompanied by the appearance of an exotic dark haired woman or grouchy looking yakuza fellows. The woman she occasionally saw around town, sometimes in passing, sometimes studying her, most likely always tracking her. But she never made to approach Nana in any way.

Often Nana wondered if her husband had noticed that his family was in danger, and sent the woman as a buffer between his enemies and his family. There no evidence otherwise, nor was there any supporting the fact.

It was all so confusing.

Even more so when that woman showed up on her doorstep one day, with the baby tutor riding on her shoulder and a cake in her hands, asking if she could see Tsuna.

"Tsukikage Nephilim" she cheerily introduced herself as, a lazy smile on her lips, "Call me Phil though, my name is rather difficult to say."

So Nana blustered her way through the rest of introductions, part of her relieved to finally have a name for her family's distant guardian, part of her terrified that this was some ploy to kill them all.

"She is an acquaintance of mine and a friend of Tsuna's," explained the baby, the words soothing her panic somewhat as they made their way upstairs to her Tsu-chan's room where the usual noise and yelling was coming from.

When the door finally opened though, revealing the warzone inside, everyone froze for half a breath before chaos erupted, louder than before.

She couldn't help but stifle a laugh at her baby's face as he stared wide-eyed at the visitor, stammering as Reborn leapt into the fray as well. Gokudera-kun seemed to be choking on air while Yamamoto-kun laughed gaily asking if she was another player of the game. The youngest, Ipin-chan and Lambo-kun, both continued playing tag, heedless of the newest visitor.

Excusing herself, Nana insisted that Phil-san stayed for dinner, as she would probably need it after dealing with all the rambunctious young men, bustling off to cook up a feast before the other woman could turn her down. Cooking was one of the things that she did best after all, feeding others was a joy that followed.

Eventually dinner was cooked and everyone was seated around the dinner table, arguing over food, laughing as the children got into little fights over all those little things that seemed important when you were 5, and most importantly, enjoying the meal with family and friends. It was far livelier than when it was just her and Tsu-chan. Those were quiet meals, filled with uncomfortable silence or stilted one sided chatter. She enjoyed the noise, it seemed to be so long ago when she had similar meals with her entire family seated around the dinner table, her husband teasing her little Tsu-kun as she served her best cooking. Even if there was clearly something else going on underneath.

When dinner was finished, Nana found herself cleaning up alongside Phil-san, who insisted on helping with the dishes as the boys and the children rushed back upstairs to continue their game or work.

They worked quickly together, her elbow deep in suds chattering away to cover her nerves as the other rinsed and dried the dishes in practised movements patiently listening with the occasional comment, as if she had done this over and over before.

Then she ran out of things to chatter about and they fell into an uneasy silence. (Why oh why was there so much to clean up? She thought desperately, paranoia rearing its ugly head again)

Finally, her guest broke the silence, "You know that there is something going on with your husband's work don't you?"

Silence reigned for a moment more, only broken by the clack of dishes against each other.

"Yes," she sighed finally, "It's dangerous for us isn't it? Whatever it is that my husband does?"

The dark haired woman nodded, "It is," she replied, "Incredibly. I'm surprised he didn't tell you for your own safety. Or make arrangements to ensure your safety while he was away at least."

Smiling brightly and clapping her hands together as if she had a great epiphany at the confirmation she exclaimed, "Ah, so you were the one who kept the strange men away!"

A faint smile crossed Phil-san's lips. "Well, yes. I felt it was prudent to pick up the slack. Especially after I got to know Tsuna. I asked a couple of the local yakuza to help out when I was away, I hope they didn't scare you too much."

Suddenly the presence of the brightly tattooed men who appeared every once in a while made much more sense. Not that it made the worry in her gut twist tighter.

"My, it seems we have much to thank you for Phil-san! You must come by for dinner again!"

"Perhaps."

They dried the final dishes in a semi-companionable silence.

"Could you tell me?" Nana suddenly asked, "What Iemitsu does? Why all those men are after my family? Why Reborn came for my Tsu-chan?"

Her guest silently dried her hands on a sunny yellow dishcloth she had bought as it reminded her of her husband and his smiles, mulling over the questions, contemplating her answer carefully.

"I could." Was the eventual reply, the words spoken slowly and heavy with some feeling (Regret? Calculation?), "But your husband may have a good reason to not tell you. Even though I think hiding it from you is stupid, I must respect his desire to keep you in the dark, nor is it my place to tell you."

"Oh." Because that was all she could say really, disappointment flooding her, swiftly followed by anger. Sawada Nana wasn't some shrinking violet that needed to be protected and coddled at every turn. She could learn to fight back if need be.

But as swiftly as the fury came, it left. Leaving her feeling tired, lost and oh so overwhelmed. After all, there was only so much a normal housewife could do in face of the danger that seemed to follow her husband, and now her only son, everywhere.

"Oh well," she chirped, it wouldn't do to show negative emotions in front of a guest after all, "I guess that I'll just have to wait till Iemitsu returns and ask him myself!"

Golden eyes watched her carefully, knowing that it would never happen. She didn't have the courage to after all, nor would her husband tell her if she asked. Silence filled the air once more, this time more brittle and uncomfortable.

"I sealed several memories of Tsuna-chi's when he was younger."

This time, it was her guest who shattered the silence.

"I will be unsealing them sometime in the next couple of days. So don't be too surprised if he seems a little…different I suppose. I'm not too sure what would happen myself. He might change, he might not."

Nana blinked in surprise at the revelation. This was different to the normal routine of 'Keep Mama out of everything'.

"Why tell me then?" the bitter words came out of their own violation, her usual mask of airheaded obliviousness evading her, "Why not keep me in the dark as usual?"

A cat like smile, satisfied and amused, what could only be called smug pride colouring those cat-gold eyes a shade brighter, "Because you deserve better Nana-san, because you are stronger than what those silly men believe you to be. I've known you for a single evening and I can see that. So I won't keep you in the dark. I'll try to be as open to you as I can. As long as it doesn't break Omerta."

Omerta. The word was foreign and tasted strange on her tongue when she murmured it to herself later. A clue, a hint, heavy with darkness and the key to the almost insidious secrets that surrounded her family. Ones that her family refused to tell her, and this almost stranger guiding her towards.

"Tread carefully though Sawada Nana." The dark-haired hitwoman warned as she flowed past her to go back upstairs to her son, "What you wish to know may bite you and drag you down into the darkness just for seeking it. Sometimes ignorance is truly bliss."

"Thank you!" Nana called out to the retreating form, receiving a lazy over the shoulder wave in return.

'For both the warning and the clue.' She continued silently.

She would find out.

And she would protect her family. Even if it broke her.

* * *

This chapter's shorter than the other, because I really couldn't think of how much further I could go with it. And exams are a serious time eater. The amount of time needed to revise a whole semester's worth of material. *Eye twitch*

I hope you enjoyed this drabble. There may or may not be a third instalment. I might do one when Iemitsu meets Phil for the first time. Seems like a natural progression. Hmmm…probably yes at the current rate.

Well, the usual drill once again, R&amp;R please! And thanks for reading!


	3. Sawada Iemitsu

Oh, hi, been a while. I, uh, may have been really busy with real life. And since many people have actually requested a continuation of this particular story… I guess it got me thinking?

Now, Iemitsu. I personally really don't like him, I mean, what sort of father goes off for ten years or so, then randomly pops back up and tell their son that they need to become a mafia Don? I do get the feeling that his heart is in the right place, but he really isn't as much as a family man as he makes himself out to be. And I think he is slightly delusional. He treats his son like he's still 6 and his wife as a completely clueless bimbo (sorry Nana, I love you, you're too adorable and I heard your cooking is amazing).

This is after the aforementioned 'unsealing' just so you know.

Hopefully this chapter doesn't disappoint. And you know. I don't own this. I wish I did though.

* * *

Sawada Iemitsu hummed happily to himself as he was waved through customs at Nanamori Airport. He finally had time to go see his precious Nana and his adorable little Tuna-fish!

It was much easier now that Tsu-kun was officially the Vongola heir. All he had to mention was he was going to check up on the dear little tuna-fishes training and he was free to go!

Giggling like a giddy school girl, the man slid into the backseat of a Vongola owned sedan, gleefully imagining the looks of delighted surprise that would greet him when he walked through the door. Tsuna would run up to him crying "Papa!" in that adorable way of his and Nana, well, he would sweep her off her feet like he always had and show his love and appreciation for her very, very thoroughly.

It was going to be glorious.

Checking his helmet (habit told him to change back into his construction man disguise, even if it wasn't really necessary. Then again, Nana still though he was one), the man shouldered his pick axe and his duffle, striding with long confident steps through the front garden, up to the door.

Picking the lock, Iemitsu threw it open with a loud "Nana! I'm home!"

Silence and darkness greeted him instead of the bright "Welcome back dear!" accompanied with the smell of heavenly food and the patter of eager feet.

(were they in trouble? Had they been found, his Nana and little Tuna-fish attacked and kidnapped?)

Oh, Nana must've gone shopping and his precious little Tuna-fish must be out with friends seein gas it was Sunday.

Well, they would be back soon enough.

Good mood restored, he dropped his bag on the floor and sauntered to the kitchen to grab a beer, pick axe still slung over a shoulder.

Maybe he would take a nap on the couch while he waited for his beloved family to come home.

* * *

Several hours later, the sun sat low on the horizon, they still hadn't returned.

Tsuna, he was less worried about. His son was the Vongola heir now, and he had his guardians as well as Reborn to look after him.

But his dear Nana was helpless. What if someone had realized her connection to him? Maybe she had been attacked. Maybe she had been captured and being tortured for his whereabouts. Maybe she was lost!

Mind made up, the CEDEF leader changed back into his suit and checked his weapons. He needed to make sure that they were fine.

Then the excited chatter of teenagers and his wife floated up into the house.

Peeking carefully out a window, Iemitsu studied the people standing at the front door. Was this an illusion?

Sure enough there was his lovely Nana, carefree as always rummaging for her keys. Tsuna was next to her holding a picnic basket and his storm and rain guardians flanking him carrying a variety of other picnic ware while the silverette spat something venomously at the other. Reborn sat on his little Tsu-kun's hair (A sentiment he could agree with, after all, he knew firsthand how fluffy and soft his baby's hair was) while talking to an unknown woman dressed in black.

(Name: Nephilim Tsukikage, assassin. 20-25 years old, mixed decent. Unaffiliated freelancer. Must be here for a job.)

Hair prickling on the back of his neck, Iemitsu tried to calm himself. Assassin or not, he refused to drag his precious wife into the dark belly of the underworld

"Oh there we go, thank you Tsu-kun we better get started on dinner shouldn't we-"

Instead, he would greet her cheerfully and quietly remove the threat.

"My dearest Nana! Look who's back!"

Catching his love in a great bear hug, he swept her off her feet quiet literally, spinning her around in circles as well as he could in the narrow hallway as her startled laugh filled the air.

"Oh my dear, you should've told me you were coming home today," she scolded him lightly when he finally set her down, "I would've come home earlier and made a great feast for us all."

Laughing nervously, he scratched the back of his head.

"Then it wouldn't have been a surprise!"

Turning to his adorable son, he spread his arms in invitation.

"Come and give Papa a great big hug my little Tuna-fish!"

Tsuna just stood there, lips pressed together in a tight line of disapproval as he clutched the basket tighter, a guardian at each shoulder – once scowling heavily with weary respect, the other grinning a cluelessly cheerful grin shadowed by something darker.

"Hello Tou-san." Came the cold greeting as opposed to the excited chatter he expected to hear. With that, his son stalked past him, carefully skirting around his open arms, guardians following him faithfully and Nana went with him all a flutter about dinner preparations.

An amused snort brought his attention to the remaining people at the door.

Sitting on the unknown's shoulder now, the cursed baby looked down on him without remorse and a clear expression of disdain while his seat's expression was one of polite blandness tinged with amusement.

"I see you've come crawling home for once Iemitsu. Signora Nephilim, this idiot is Vongola's head of CEDEF, Sawada Iemistu, Tsuna's father. Iemitsu, Signora Nephilim Tsukikage as you should have figured out, Tsuna's bodyguard before me."

The polite blandness faded into a polite smile.

"A pleasure to meet you I'm sure Signore Sawada. I don't believe we are familiar enough to warrant such a greeting, not do I believe the floor is particularly comfortable."

The woman's voice was rich, full of nuances that made reading her difficult. Not to mention, Reborn hadn't eliminated her yet, instead, made a point of introducing her as his precious tuna-fish's bodyguard. Was she not a threat or had she hoodwinked the world's best hitman? Unless this entire thing was an illusion?

(The faint freckle just under Nana's eye was there, the crinkles of the crow's feet around his wife's eyes were all perfectly placed. The faint scar on Tsuna's hand from that time when he accidentally grabbed a thorny plant was there as well. All details very difficult to replicate.)

Slowly standing, Iemitsu eyed her, drawing on all the authority and dignity of his position.

"Signora Tsukikage, I must confess that this is a surprise. Out of curiousity, how long have you known my son?"

Her smile gained a cold edge, "Longer than you I'm sure."

The sting of the insult made him long to show this intruder her place.

(She had the support of Reborn though, and her reputation wasn't one caused by exaggeration. He'd have to move carefully.)

Before he could do more than open his mouth to remind her where she was, he dearest Nana's voice rang out from the kitchen

"Iemitsu dear! Could you get the plates from the top shelf? All the boys are still a little too short!"

Glaring at the hitwoman, he reluctantly turned his back on her to help his darling wife. It wouldn't do to make her upset.

Grabbing the desired plates, the CEDEF head then snuggled his lovely wife, showing his appreciation of her when Reborn wandered in alone.

"Signora Nephilim won't be joining us tonight Maman," the oddly childish voice rang out, "she mentioned she had some work to do."

"Oh my! But I have already started preparations! I guess there'll be more for the boys then."

Work? He better find out what she was up to. Right after what was going to be a great meal with his dearest family!

* * *

The next day dawned, with his dearest Tuna-fish and Reborn leaving for training.

Eating the delicious Japanese style breakfast prepared for him by his beautiful wife, he once again took his time to show his love and appreciation of her, then headed out himself to find out what that elite assassin was doing in his town.

As expected, tracking her down was harder than it seemed.

Eventually, Iemitsu decided to take a break and track down his cute son instead to have some father son bonding time. It would be great, they would go fishing, then have a barbeque with said fish and he would help his son find the perfect woman like he had with Nana.

When he found him though, he wasn't expecting to see his precious son standing back to back with his storm and rain guardians, all looking extremely cautious and just this side of terrified in the park.

A shadow separated itself from under a tree, materializing as a swirl of darkness with gleaming blades aimed at the back of his son's head.

Heart in his throat, the momentary terror rooted him to his spot as his darling son dodged the blow by a hairs breadth, his guardians already turning to meet the threat.

Steel clashed with steel before both wheeled away from the incoming explosives. Smoke filled the air, the smidgeon of relief Iemitsu had felt when his _son_ escaped death was immediately drowned out by the rush of adrenalinefearglee.

(She was a threat, he knew it!)

Whipping out his gun, the man aimed his gun on instinct, firing at that dark shadow while rushing forwards to meet the threat head on.

Brown met gold as flesh met flesh.

Then the world spun upside down and all he could see was the blue sky, a heavy weight on his chest.

Jumbled voices filled the air as he struggled to draw air back into his lungs again. He needed to get up, had to fight, hadtoprotect!

"What exactly do you think you're doing Sawada?"

The childish voice cut through the madness around him, the anger within it instantly causing everyone to freeze.

"She was going to kill him!" he wheezed out, that weight on his chest never ceasing.

Despite his child's body, Reborn was still out and out terrifying. Hat shading his eyes from view, few noticed the cursed child's shadow stretch and change.

"Do you really think I would let someone who would want to kill my student to actually get around to attacking MY student?"

The fading adrenaline spiked again as downed man realized exactly what he had been implying.

Gold met brown as his restrainer slammed her foot into his chest again, his hands flying up instinctively to protect himself.

"You really are an idiot for the vaunted Young Lion of Vongola." The pressure increased as she dug her heel in, heedless of the grip around her ankle, "I would kill someone I spent over the last decade protecting because of an idiot with underground connections refused to cover his bases when it came to his family."

Suddenly the pressure was gone and his hands empty.

Disproving brown met bewildered brown this time.

"Didn't you see Reborn on standby the entire time? Really Tou-san, you really are an idiot." And with that, his son turned his back on him and walked away.

His son turned his back on him and walked away.

_His son turned his back on him and __**walked away**__._

It had never happened before. Maybe once or twice in a childish fit of anger but never in disappointment. This wasn't his adorable son he had left behind after the Arcobaleno Representative battles. The one that looked to him in awe, joy and admiration.

It was that assassin's fault. It had to be. She appeared and warped his son into something he was not. She was the cause of this change and somehow she had fooled all of his family as well as Reborn.

She was a threat to his family.

She needed to be eliminated.

Half a breath later he was back on his feet, ready to do anything to ensure that his family was safe.

(He was going to kill her, here and now. He didn't want to expose his adorable little Tuna-fish to the death and destruction of the mafia, but he was going to be the Vongola Don, he'd see it anyway.)

Fingers reaching out, brushing those dark strand of hair, before irritated gold flashed briefly and his target twisted out of reach.

The clarity and rush of a good fight flooded him. Filtering out the cries of alarm behind him, the CEDEF head rapidly activated Hyper Dying Will mode. Nephilim Tsukikage was not an enemy to be taken lightly.

His target just kept slipping through his fingers though. Each blow missing by the bare minimum. Vaguely he heard Reborn's voice explaining something before he filtered it out as unnecessary.

"You're not going to give up are you?"

The sighed question must be a distraction and flowed away as he tried to land another hit.

"Tch, fine. Be like that. Don't cry when I beat some sense into you moron."

Then an inexplicable chill swept over him, cautioning him to retreat and take stock of the situation.

Hundreds of silver blades appeared from nowhere and then he was on the defensive as like an expert puppeteer, his opponent orchestrated them with a well-practiced hand.

Identical blades. Illusion? Or Propagation?

Illusion whispered instinct but before he could turn the fight around, he was bound, wire cutting into his body.

An easy wave of the hand and those blades vanished, leaving behind very real razor wire tying him up.

(There was a loop around his throat that would kill him if he tried to escape)

"I repeat Sawada, you are an idiot. What exactly do you think to achieve by killing me?"

Growling the bound man snapped, "You warped him! You changed my son! Turned him against me!"

Incredulous stares met his statement.

"I warped your son?" the disbelief hung in the air for a bare second, "You, leave for years and don't expect your son to grow up? Leave loose ends for enemies to find and expect him to remain innocent? Expect that he fight for his life and be forced one of the most vaunted roles within the underworld and not come out changed!?"

Then she was in his face, features twisted into a snarl as a hand in his hair forced him to meet her eyes.

"That boy grew up without a father. Was ostracized and suffered for it because there was no one he could turn to. No friends, no family. He's mother couldn't help and he didn't want to worry her. He's father supposedly dead and had connections that caused him to be kidnapped multiple times and experience so much death before the age of 8. He wasn't a stupid boy Sawada Iemitsu, he chose to forget and I chose to protect him where I could. Then he gets forced to become the Vongola Decimo, goes through all the trials and tribulations needed and ones that are not needed to deal with this world you thrust him into without preparation. Then you dare blame me for your own short sightedness and incompetence."

She dropped him roughly to the ground and turned away in disgust.

"I'm done here. Tsuna-chi, Gokudera-san and Yamamoto-san, good work today. My place is open to you at any time to feel free to swing by ok? Ciao Signore Reborn, have fun with the idiot."

The flurry of goodbyes went unheard as the man on the ground lay there fuming.

The baby sized shadow that fell over him broke him out of his thoughts.

"She's right Iemitsu, you screwed up big time handling this at least." The man in a toddler's body eyed him with something akin to resigned disappointment and disgust, "family is just as important as Family, more so in this case considering your relation to the Primo" A weight settled on him as the pseudo-child vanished from view, small hands stripping him of the majority of his weapons and tracking devices before moving him somewhere civilians wouldn't find him easily.

"Stay there and reflect while your crew try to locate you."

With that parting comment, Reborn turned and left, kicking his complaining student along. So what if his student grew a bit more backbone? Iemitsu really was an idiot.

* * *

And that's a wrap.

It was an idea floating around in my head a couple of weeks now. I didn't really realize it was so long until I wrote it out. Not sure if I managed to capture Iemitsu correctly. On the one hand, he is a very accomplished fighter, considering his position, and should be capable of analysing a situation and reacting appropriately. But (I feel) he is a bit of an idealistic bastard who didn't think things through when he decided to have a family and is a bit blind to things regarding them.

Having my OC kick him around a bit was a nice feeling though. Any guesses on what type of flame she has?

It may have sparked another idea for a chapter…I am unrepentant.

Thanks for reading! Hopefully the whole chapter makes sense and nothing stands out as particularly terrible. Although I have rediscovered my dislike for using names again…


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